More borders to fall Romania and Bulgaria join the Schengen area
Romania and Bulgaria will fully join the Schengen area from January 1, 2025. This means that land border controls with other countries will be lifted.
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- Romania and Bulgaria will fully join the Schengen area on January 1, 2025, which will eliminate land border controls with other Schengen states.
- Both countries were already members of "Air Schengen", and now land borders with Hungary, Greece and between Romania and Bulgaria will also be free of controls.
- The Schengen area comprises 25 EU states as well as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, with Switzerland being represented but not entitled to vote.
Romania and Bulgaria will fully join the Schengen area from January 1, 2025. This means that land border controls with the other Schengen states will be lifted.
This was decided by the EU member states at the Home Affairs and Justice Council in Brussels on Thursday, as the Hungarian Council Presidency wrote on X. It is a great victory for Bulgaria, Romania and Europe as a whole.
Romania is well prepared to strengthen the Schengen area, said the Romanian Interior Minister, Marian-Catalin Predoiu, before the meeting. The Romanian people deserve it.
Switzerland is a member, but not entitled to vote
Romania and Bulgaria have been members of "Air Schengen" since the end of March, which means that there are no controls at air or sea borders. Land border controls between Romania and Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary and Bulgaria and Greece will now be lifted.
The agreement enables the approximately 420 million people of the 25 EU states that are part of Schengen, as well as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, to travel freely between the member states without border controls. As a member of Schengen, Switzerland can participate in the EU Council, but cannot vote. The Swiss Confederation is represented by Federal Councillor Beat Jans.
